The Paths of the Future

The aim of the "Paths of the Future" project is to develop self-awareness and 21st-century skills in primary school students during a pilot 8-month informal vocational orientation program at Bajerov Primary School Prešov region). This informal education was accessible throughout the school year to all 2nd-grade students from both the majority and minority groups, regardless of their academic performance or social background.

Experiential and practical activities were carried out in 15 meetings with the school's educational counselor, 2 meetings with 14 experts from the state and non-profit sectors, culture, or business from the Prešov region, a "model day" at high school, a "model day" in employment, a critical thinking workshop, and an excursion to the Prešov Employment Office. The program concluded with peer learning, where actively engaged children shared their experiences with their classmates from lower grades.

As part of one of the events, professionals from various fields were brought in to introduce the students to their careers. During these presentations, the students learned about the path to the profession, the positive and less positive aspects it involves, how much additional experience was needed to enter the profession, and what obstacles had to be overcome. The children were introduced to less common professions: a member of the prison and judicial guard corps, a local mayor, a Romani language lecturer and translator, an employee of the Office of the Government Plenipotentiary for Romani Communities, and an "Omama" (a person from a marginalized community who teaches other mothers how to properly develop their children from birth). An important aspect of the presentation was that the children learned about professions that people in the region are engaged in.

The project program was developed based on the existing career guidance methodology of the non-profit organization Človek v ohrození, which is publicly available on the internet.